It's History

Portland's Forgotten Tunnels & Trapdoors (Shanghai Tunnels Explained) (8x95)

: 16, 2022

The Portland Underground, commonly called the “Shanghai Tunnels,” was a series of bar and hotel basements linked to each other and the Willamette River docks by an intricate system of tunnels under the city streets. “Shanghaiing” refers to the capture and sale of able-bodied men to ship captains needing extra crew. Victims were drugged with opiates, kidnapped while intoxicated, or knocked unconscious. Oral tradition has kept the history of the Portland Underground alive. Today, 150 years after Shanghaiing began you can still view the secrets of the past by visiting the tunnels.